OTTAWA, CANADA - MARCH 11: Mark Stone #16 of the Ottawa Senators checks Shawn Thornton #22 of the Boston Bruins along the boards, during an NHL game at Scotiabank Place, on March 11, 2013 in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. (Photo by Jana Chytilova/Freestyle Photography/Getty Images)

Shawn Thornton (Photo by Jana Chytilova/Getty Images

BOSTON (CBS) — Nearly every night in the NHL, at least one game goes to a shootout to determine a winner. With so many shootout attempts over the course of a season, it’s hard to truly find a way to be innovative and surprise the entire hockey world.

Yet that’s exactly what Kaspar Daugavins was able to do Monday night in Ottawa against the Bruins.

The 24-year-old Latvian stood at center ice and stuck the toe of his stick blade on the top of the puck and steered the puck up the ice as if he was pushing a vacuum cleaner. As he approached goaltender Tuukka Rask, he deked left before pulling a spin-o-rama and trying to slip the puck inside the right post. However, Rask stayed with him and extended his toe just enough to make the save.

The reaction was instant, with Twitter exploding with opinions — both positive and negative — about the move.

Bruins forward Shawn Thornton spoke with the NHL Network after the game and described the reaction on the Boston bench.

“Something we had never seen before,” Thornton said with a laugh. “That takes a … takes a lot of sack to do that, so I guess give him credit.”

For those not fluent in locker room talk, Thornton was indicating that Daugavins showed a bit of intestinal fortitude by attempting such a risky move.

“It almost went in,” Thornton, who himself scored the Bruins’ first goal earlier in the night, added. “I don’t think Tuukka saw it before, either. None of our guys have ever tried it in practice. It’s one of those things where if it works, you’re the talk of the town. If it doesn’t, then it doesn’t really look as good.”